Music artists and companies around the world stand against sexual assault

In mid-October, Twitter and Facebook boomed with sexual assault testimonies from people around the globe. Alyssa Milano, actress and activist, called for those affected to spread awareness of the problem by tweeting with the #MeToo hashtag. Ever since then, more and more people have been sharing their stories.

More recently, in recognition of both the #MeToo movement and the more recent #TimesUp movement, celebrities and attendees dressed in black to the 2018 Golden Globes, using the awards show as an outlet for protest.

The movement has quickly found its way toward the music industry, as artists such as Lady Gaga, Tegan and Sara, Sheryl Crow and Bjork became part of the campaign by using the hashtag and sharing their stories. Across the world, the #MeToo and #TimesUp campaigns inspired another campaign.

The #MeNoMore campaign began with a group of women in the Australian music industry. Courtney Barnett, sisters Lisa and Jessica Origliasso of The Veronicas, folk band All Our Exes Live in Texas and hundreds of other women in Australia have been getting involved. As with other campaigns, these women joined together to support their peers who have experienced sexual assault, discrimination, harassment and violence.

The objective of #MeNoMore is to “create a safe haven for people to share their stories and seek support around sexual harassment in the music industry,” the group said in an open letter. These women will be working with others in the entertainment industry to investigate a variety of offenses and toxic workplaces.

Spotify, an application with over 140 million active users, even helped Oprah’s Golden Globes speech get heard after the passionate speech discussed these issues. Winfrey spoke of race and sexual harassment, as well as the #MeToo movement. Spotify included the speech in the Jan. 12 edition of its New Music Friday playlist, which is a playlist meant to introduce noteworthy songs. The speech is included on a playlist with artists including Camila Cabello, Fall Out Boy, Jack White and Ansel Elgort and is the final song on the playlist.

While some people questioned Spotify’s placement of the track, the company defended its decision with good reason: “People lean on music for hope, encouragement, to grieve, to find community … We see Spotify as a platform for discovery, and we are always trying to facilitate ways for our audience to discover music, culture, and each other.”

So, why do we care?

By encouraging those who have experienced sexual assault or discrimination to speak up, many artists and companies in the industry are uniting for a cause that is bigger and more important than any one artist. They are using their influence to call for a change.

The only way issues such as sexual assault are going to stop is if more and more people get involved worldwide, whether it’s sharing their stories or simply using a hashtag. If the #MeToo and #TimesUp campaigns drove traction in the Australian music industry, hopefully the rest of the world will follow.

Phoebe Smith is a senior public relations major. Her column appears biweekly in Pulp. You can email her at phsmith@syr.edu and follow her on Twitter @phoebesmithh5.